


South of the River, East of the Sun

by stickmarionette



Series: Futilities Arc [2]
Category: Fullmetal Alchemist
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon - First Anime, Canon - Manga, M/M, court intrigue
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-07-21
Updated: 2010-07-21
Packaged: 2017-10-10 17:19:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,678
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/102186
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stickmarionette/pseuds/stickmarionette
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><i>"Why did you come to Xing?"</i></p><p><i>"To find a cure for my brother, what else?"</i></p><p>Ed's obsession with his brother's cure claims yet another victim.  But Ling's got his own agenda too.  Part 2 of the Futilities Arc.</p>
            </blockquote>





	South of the River, East of the Sun

**Author's Note:**

> Named after the song Jiang Nan by JJ Lin.

The first time they met, Ed had no idea who he was. That was refreshing and amusing, so Ling pretended he had no idea who the blond was either. It wasn't like he had been getting Ran Fan to track the Elric brothers as soon as he got wind of their presence in Xing. Nope, nothing of the sort.

_"What does he look like, this Amestrian alchemist?"_

_"He…would be called short, even by our standards. Striking, though. Impossible to miss."_

And indeed, no one could possibly forget those sun-bright eyes, gleaming gold with almost demonic focus; or the terrible and beautiful efficiency of motion as he fought, movements not quite fast by Xingian standards but precise and deadly when combined with the sheer overwhelming power of his alchemy.

It wouldn't be very fair to say that he fell for the blond at first sight – Ling had, after all, heard a lot about Edward Elric before he even laid eyes on him – but it would be, in the strictest definition of the term, true.

As the blond stomped away from their first encounter, flushed and snarling under his breath, Ling couldn't help the wide grin that threatened to engulf his face.

"Well, I think that went rather well, don't you?"

\--

The man sprawled lazily on the dragon-embroidered couch, being fanned by two porcelain-doll servant girls and sipping tribute-tea from the clans of the south was middle-aged, overweight and decrepit. His name was Hai, and he was the first prince of Xing.

"So what's this I hear about the foreigner, dear brother?"

Ling smiled, all the better to hide the disgusted look in his eyes. Hai might be useless, discredited and delusional, but that didn't mean he had no power. He was, after all, still the first-born prince and had his pick of his own clan's best and brightest to do his bidding.

For example.

"You have excellent hearing, royal older brother," he said cordially. More accurately speaking, it was Hai's mother-clan which had excellent spies, but that was an open secret better left unspoken between twenty-four royal brothers, all hungrily eyeing that same exalted golden throne. Was there anyone in the Empire who did not want to sit high up on the dais of the Audience Hall of Heavenly Harmony, to receive the homage of the fifty clans and to direct the daily affairs of Xing?

If they said so, they were probably lying.

"Ah, Ling, You know me best," said Hai, laughing uproariously. "I keep in touch with interesting affairs inside the Palace for my personal amusement only. You younger brothers can have the throne – this humble prince only wishes to live out the rest of his days in peace."

First Prince Hai was a very bad liar.

Deception amongst those born of the same blood was a common enough event, at least for this set of brothers. It was part of his upbringing, second-nature enough that he could smile wider at this blatant lie and only incline his head in acknowledgement.

"And you, royal older brother, know that I am the same."

Hai laughed again, sloshing expensive tea onto his golden vest. Only a few were allowed to wear gold in Xing - the Emperor, sometimes the Empress or a couple of favoured Concubines, and the Crown Prince. Ling suspected that Hai knew he would not be wearing the golden vest for much longer.

"This is why I like you, Ling! You're so straight-forward and cheerful. Come, sit down and tell me about this pet alchemist of yours."

"I thank you," he said cheerfully, as was expected of him, and sat down on the other side of the couch. "But really, there isn't much to tell. I met him while visiting my mother-clan, and Royal Father summoned him because he was interested in Amestrian alchemy."

Yes, Ling was very good at lying to his brothers.

_"Why did you come to Xing?"_

_"To find a cure for my brother, what else?"_

_"Do you love him?"_

_"Of course," Ed said, without hesitation, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world._

Thirteenth Prince Yuan was handsome, well-read, well-spoken and the son of the Empress. He was also ruthless and ambitious like no other.

"Will you help me, brother?" he asked, dark eyes intent on his older brother's face, twirling a paper fan absently with long, elegant fingers.

Those fingers had never seen the hilt of a sword, but Ling knew better than to underestimate Yuan just because he was the intellectual prince. The brightest of the princes gained favour easily with the Emperor because of his talents at poetry and rhetoric, but most of all his brilliance at the art of making war.

That same art could easily be turned on anyone in his path.

Ling met Yuan's eyes with his ever-present smile.

"Yes. I shall help you against the eldest prince."

\--

_His sword sang through the air, missing the side of Ed's head and cleaving through several strands of blond hair instead. Ed growled low in his throat as he rolled away from the swing, clapping his hands before pressing them to the ground._

Not going to give you time for that_, Ling thought, darting forward and slamming Ed into the ground, pinned by his greater weight. He had the sword pressed to Ed's throat before the alchemist could blink._

_Ed didn't even wince. His only reaction to what must have been terrible pain was a self-depreciating snort in between laboured breaths. Then he looked at Ling, who was suddenly well-aware of the distance between them - or rather the lack thereof._

_Something must have changed in his eyes, because Ed's gaze turned thoughtful and calculating for the briefest of moments before he leaned up ever so slightly into the sharp edge of the blade._

_A thin line of red decorated that pale throat, garish and almost obscene._

_Ling flinched, recoiling away instinctively, and that was the only opening Ed needed. Next thing he knew he was the one on his back with pain blossoming at every point of impact, with his right wrist pinned flat to the cold stone paving of the royal gardens and an automail hand on his left arm._

_He smiled up at Ed's mad, bright eyes and tested the hold on his wrist. Ed grinned, almost inhumanly fierce and tightened his hold, forcing Ling to drop the sword or risk crippling pain._

_They stared at each other for a fraction of a second, and Ling admitted defeat – no need for so much pain and injury when sparring - dropping the sword at last._

_He had a momentary glimpse of Ed's thoughtful smirk before the blond leaned down and kissed him hard in time with the metallic sound of the blade hitting the ground._

\--

Ling needed more support amongst the Emperor's advisers. The honourable General Tai was said to favour his temperament and his great skill at close combat. The honourable General Tai could be persuaded to support his claim. The honourable General Tai had a daughter who was of age to marry.

These things were perfectly simple, sometimes.

"Of course, General, I would be greatly honoured to take your daughter as my consort."

_"Why are you hesitating? It's a perfect deal."_

_"You are…not like how you appear at first," Ling said slowly, frowning._

_Edward laughed. "You wouldn't be the first person to say that."_

_As Ling pondered this cryptic, bitter statement, the blond flopped over on the bed, eyes closed and hands pillowing his head. "How desperately do you want to be Emperor?"_

The bride and the groom were dressed in rich red cloth threaded with gold, the traditional colour of celebration mixed in with that of royalty. The Emperor gave his blessing to the union, with favourable words for the beauty of the bride and the valour of his twelfth son, the groom. The ceremonies were lavish, the feast went on long into the night, and the rice wine flowed freely.

Ling smiled through it all, even when Ed walked up to him, flushed and resplendent in silk and said the marriage-toast in perfect Xingian without stumbling once.

He wasn't the only one who emptied his glass of strong wine in one go, though, and that had to mean something.

\--

Ed had promised to help him become Crown Prince if he aided in the Elric brothers' quest for a cure for their respective conditions. He had followed through exactingly and expected Ling to do the same. That was all the meaning to their association, or so the blond would have him believe.

Ed called it 'equivalent exchange'. Ling thought it an exchange, but didn't see how equivalence factored into it.

_"You know what they call you?"_

_"I've had my share of rude nicknames."_

_"The King-Maker. Edward the King-Maker of Amestris and Xing, with the devil's eyes."_

_"Amestris and _Xing?"__

"You helped Mustang become Fuhrer, didn't you?"

Three months after the death of the Emperor, Ling was crowned in the Audience Hall of Heavenly Harmony, with the provincial officials, the previous Emperor's advisers, even those of his fractious brothers who were still left all kneeling on the marble floor, their cries of benediction and long life to the new Emperor echoing empty in his ears.

"Ten thousand years of life to the heavenly Emperor," they chorused. Ling only looked down at the sea of bowed black heads and ached for a strand of gold.

Two weeks after that, an envoy arrived from Amestris requesting the presence of the Fullmetal Alchemist on behalf of Fuhrer Roy Mustang.

Ed kissed him goodbye in the empty royal bed chamber in between snarling about his Fuhrer's unbearable rudeness.

"Will you be back?" Ling asked, finally, uncertainly, because no matter his domain, he had a feeling that no one ruled Edward Elric.

Ed shot him a bland look. "Of course. We're making good progress with Al's cure here," he said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

No one ruled Edward Elric. His world was simply dominated by a single, all-encompassing objective.

_fin._


End file.
